I live in a cave and I don't have a phone.

I was shopping for some accessories at the mall nearby for my semi-formal outfit.
One thing that annoyed me was this--
Every store that I shopped at all asked for my phone number when I checked out.

I asked a cashier why she needed my phone number.
She said the store usually sends coupons to the customers through this.
Looking up a news article on ABC News,
my phone number can actually reveal more information than I expect.

"Consumers do not understand that giving out the phone number allows the business to buy more information about the consumer through a system known as enhancement." Companies that specialize in enhancement can generate things like marketing profiles, credit reports or background checks on individuals."

There was one moment I thought the store was using my phone number to verify my credit card.
Yet, after reading the article, I doubted it.

"Telephone numbers are an element of the information used by ChoicePoint to verify a person's identity," spokesman Chuck Jones said. "However, none of ChoicePoint's products begin the verification process with a telephone number."

From now on, instead of asking the cashier why the store wants my number,
I will say this----

"Sorry, I live in a cave and I don't have a phone." Or
"I came from the 19th Century and I don't know what a phone is"